User blog:Thantosiet/Titles: The Good, the Bad and the Almost
What's the big deal? Here's the thing. When you create a story, any story, just because you finish the final draft doesn't mean the work is done. Now your story needs an audience, and it's up to you to either find them, or find someone who can help you find them. Even if you're not actually selling this story, you have to market it. And that means hooks. The very first hook, your best foot forward, is the title. Honestly, this has always been very hard for me, maybe because I think it's such a big deal, but I know it's not always easy. If the show is good, a weak title isn't going to ruin it, but getting it right means you're that much more likely to get people to go "that sounds cool, I'll check it out." Also, of course, all of these are my personal opinions, and I'm not claiming those are better than anyone else's. If you disagree, feel free to explain why, I'd love to hear different opinions. For clarification, titles in "quotation marks" are episode titles. And because it may be an issue, none of these titles were picked to be mean. Any assumptions about the show come purely from the title, to make a point: none were made out of spite. Snark, yes, but not spite. The Good These are titles that have something clever or intriguing that makes me curious enough to want to see the show (or episode). "The Mermaid, the Wolf and the Bloody Hobo" This is pretty awesome. It suggests genre (mermaid show) but immediately throws its own unique elements. I'd guess this particular episode fell into the mystery genre. The parallel structure is also fun, making the hobo even more of a twist. Secretly Siren Sirens are traditionally evil, or at least dangerous, so this twist on the mermaid title piques my interest. Are we going to get a story about the villains? Or at least antiheroes? Alliteration's awesome, also. The Ocean Potion The rhyme is clever, it indicates mermaids without spelling it out, and it actually sets up the plot's inciting incident: the mermaids will get their tails from a potion. The Mermaid Portal Juxtaposition: it's important. Portal is not a very common word, and although it can be fantasy-related, it's also got an air of sci-fi about it which sets it apart. The Last Mermaids An air of doom or desperation, maybe even loneliness. Implies a darker tone than most mermaid shows go for. Secret Life of a Mermaid "The Secret Life of __" is vaguely scientific and stylish. It's a pretty good variation on the concept, which several other mermaid shows have tried and failed to evoke. The Almost This is a mixed bag. Mostly they sound a little awkward, or they're either too vague or specific in the wrong way. Tail of a Mermaid & Merman A bit repetitive (was the tail pun really necessary?), and the ampersand is mildly irritating, but it does indicate there's going to be an actual story here, and mentions the merman, which is a less common element. Also, this is something of a recurring weird issue, but "Tail" singular when applied to multiple characters makes me wonder if these are going to be conjoined twins sharing a single tail, but sadly, it never is. Mermaid Secrets This tells me the genre, but nothing else. There's a reason more than one show uses this title: it is incredibly generic. Nearly every mermaid show has its characters keep their abilities a secret. The Secret Life of the American Mermaids One of those attempts at sounding like Secret Life of a Mermaid I mentioned. Not the worst, but not the best either. I have this urge to sing a tweaked "American Idiot" whenever I see it. Fluffy Tails and Fishy Scales The weirdness is appealing, and it's got a kind of rhythm to it, even if it seems like it's trying a little too hard. Fluffy suggests this is going to be lighthearted, so there's the subgenre too. That One Secret Vagueness ahoy! Another stand-in for a particular title style. The casual tone doesn't quite make up for the fact that nothing about it indicates mermaids or magic. "Power Hour" Every show uses this title at some point or another, and the rhyme is getting old. Incidentally, I've found from writing serialized chapter fiction that some kind of gimmick (must mention three elements, must be a song title, must be one word) can help me come up with episode titles. The Bad Again, just to make sure it's clear, a bad title does not make a bad show. However, instead of selling the show, a title like one of these makes me ''less ''interested in seeing it, for one reason or another. My Mermaid Life Oh dear...same as "Mermaid Secrets," but worse. It sounds like what a third-grader would write on her diary, surrounded by artistic squiggles and flowers, and the i's dotted with little hearts. 3 Water Girls Both trying too hard and hardly even trying. This is an example of one of my pet peeves: using numerals instead of words in the title. It's far too much like chatspeak for me. At the same time, "water girls" seems like it's trying far to hard to avoid the word mermaid while still being about mermaids, and it comes off as awkward. The Tails of Wish The longer I look at this, the less I understand it. It does not bode well for the writing in the series itself. Aqua Waters "Aqua" is the Latin word for water. This doesn't seem to be as common knowledge as maybe it should be. Who put you in charge, anyway? Nobody. I'm well aware that a show can have a terrible or boring title and still be good--look at The 3 Tails--and that titles are difficult. I'm putting myself forward because I'm part of the audience you're trying to reach. You don't have to agree with me, I'm just trying to get you to think about something you maybe haven't considered yet. Also, check this out: "Is Your Title Too Generic?" B. McKenzie, Superhero Nation. Starts off with a list of questions your title should try to answer. Category:Blog posts Category:Reviews